My Beloved Monster
by Mad Hatter - J
Summary: The third installment in my True Blood series, now entering the third season story line. Persephone meets the Mickens family and involves herself in a very elaborate scheme to take down Sophie-Anne in order to save Eric from prosecution.
1. Chapter 1: Alright

**Chapter 1: Alright**

We are young, we run free,  
>Keep our teeth, nice and clean,<br>See our friends, see the sights, feel alright.  
>Are we like you?<br>I can't be sure.  
>(<em><strong>Supergrass<strong>_)

_'Vampire related crime has increased by 32% in the last year alone. You can't sit there and tell me that your kind aren't responsible for-"_

"_We are no less responsible than your race. You can't seriously be saying that in the case of V dealing, or vampire-draining that vampires are the ones to blame. That supposed '32% increase'-"_

"_There's nothing 'supposed' about it. These are the facts. Vampires are murderers; they are evil, unholy killers and no sane person should feel safe while they are free to roam _our_ streets and feed on _our_ children."_

"_Uh, thank-you Minister Newlin, Ms. Flannigan. I think that will do for tonight. Vampires: are they making us feel unsafe on our own streets? Tonight's poll shows that a majority of our viewers think 'YES'. You can have your say on our website, but more on that tomorrow night. Thanks for joining us. Good night and, uh, ha-ha, take care."_

* * *

><p>"Johnny. Joh- Johnny!"<p>

"What?"

"Stop. I don't want to do that. I already told you."

"Aw, come on. This is, what, like our seventh date?"

"Second."

"What? I'm pre-eetty sure we've been on more than two."

"Those other times were just at your house, and all we did was watch reruns of _The Simpsons_."

"They still count."

"Just stop, alright. I just wanna ha- What was that?"

"What?"

"It sounded like hissing or something. Like someone lighting a match."

"Stop tryin' to change the subject. Come back over here."

"I'm not kidding! Did you hear it?"

"Alright, I get it. We're leavin'. I'll drop you home."

"What? Why? Just 'cause I don't wanna have sex with you? You're such an asshole!"

"No, it's because you're actin' crazy. Like a crazy fuckin' bitch."

"Gahh…He's right, you know. You are acting like a crazy bitch."

"Who the fuck are you?"

"I'm Felix. She was right about the noise. Good ears. I hate using lighters. I find that matches make the cigarettes taste so much better."

"What do you want?"

"Me? Oh, I'm just lookin' for a little pick-me-up. So…who's first?"

* * *

><p>The weather in Arkansas was a little warmer than it had been in Bon Temps, when Persephone had left. Not that temperature really matters when you're a vampire, but she thought it called for a wardrobe adjustment; humidity and jeans don't really go together, after all. She strolled up a dirt path towards a motel, wearing a white sundress that reached just above her knees, and feeling more content than she had been able to for weeks. She had left Felix alone at her house, which he had decided he would be permanently sharing with her, feeling as though he was 'mature' enough to look after himself for a few hours.<br>The motel she now approached wasn't exactly a five-star resort, but it was probably the best someone could do when they were on an impromptu trip, such as Sam was.

She got to the door of room 12 and knocked three times.

"Yeah?" a voice called from inside.

"Room service!"

"Uh, hang on."

She chuckled and leant against the door frame while she waited for him to remove the chain from the door.

"I didn't order any-" He shook his head when he saw who it was, hiding his delight.

"Need anything serviced?" Persephone joked.

"Come on in," Sam smiled, jerking his head towards the small room.

"How goes the search?" Persephone asked, shutting the door behind her. Having been adopted into the Merlotte family, Sam had never known his real parents. Recent events had ignited his curiosity about his genetic origins, and he was now doing his best to follow the few clues he had to the whereabouts of his blood-kin.

"Doin' better than I thought I'd be. The Merlotte's – well, my adoptive father – gave me an address for a place not far from here. Last known place they were stayin'. Now I just gotta make sure they're still there. But with my luck lately, well…"

His so-called 'luck' in the past few weeks had involved a number of the waitresses from his bar being murdered because of their vampire-involved sexual preferences, and then a re-acquaintance with a maenad who'd had her mind set on sacrificing him to an ancient god. As you can see, he survived all this, but after what he had been through he thought it wouldn't be out of the question for his birth family to be Cyclopes, or cannibals or gangly green goblins living under a bridge. What with his luck.

"I'm willing to bet that your luck is going to pick up from now on. All that other stuff is behind you."

"Yeah, let's hope so." He sat back on his bed with his hands behind his head, and stretched, heaving a sigh. "If I hear anything from these people I called today, I'll probably be on my way to see my folks either tomorrow or the day after that."

Persephone lay down next to him and he began to wonder if she remembered _her_ real family. Deciding it might ruin her good mood if he were to ask, he settled for something that didn't require a lot of talking.

"Come here," he said, wrapping his arm beneath her and pulling her onto him. As she gazed down at him, he couldn't help but thank whatever god was out there for the fact that she had chosen to come back.

* * *

><p>"You fed from humans!"<p>

"What? No."

"Felix, I can tell. Don't you lie to me."

"Yes, mom."

On Persephone's return to Bon Temps, that same night, she had discovered Felix standing on her porch, having some 'down time'; which basically, for a vampire, involves standing still in one spot for long periods of time. As Felix's maker, Persephone could feel certain things about him, not unlike when a human had ingested her blood; but the dead giveaway (excuse the pun), had been the mass of blood spilt down the front of his shirt. The smell was most certainly human.

"I stocked the fridge _specifically_ with O-positive for you. Can I not leave the house for a few hours without you running off and ripping out someone's throat?"

"Pers, you're nagging. I didn't kill them, alright? I fed on them, and then I glamoured them. They won't remember a thing."

Felix smiled proudly, believing that he had covered up his tracks well enough this time to not receive any more badgering from his maker. She stared at him, and then asked:

"Did you heal the wounds on their neck?"

His smug grin fell. Whoops.

"Uh…"

She gave him a stern frown and pointed towards the front door.

"Move. God forbid, I may have to lock you up of a night."

* * *

><p>Persephone found that an easier solution to keeping tabs on Felix's impulses was to simply keep him by her side at all times. He didn't exactly dislike the idea, but he knew it was going to be a long time before he fed straight from the vein. Now, entering Merlotte's, she was greeted by a welcoming voice.<p>

"Well, hey Persy! Wasn't espectin' to see you in here; not with Sam off doin' whatever it is that boy does."

"Lafayette," she smiled, "This is Felix."

"I'm her son," Felix said with mock-sincerity.

Both Persephone and Lafayette looked at him with raised eyebrows, their eyes following him as he moved off towards an empty booth. Lafayette narrowed his eyes, as though trying to consider the logic in Felix's statement. When he glanced back at Persephone he found that she had already taken a seat in front of the bar, behind which he was currently standing, and that she wasn't fazed in the least by what Felix had said.

"So, what have I missed?" she asked him, as though she had wandered off from her favorite TV show.

Lafayette tossed back a shot of tequila that he had been holding. Judging by his expression, Persephone had indeed missed something crucial.

" 'Member Tara's boyfrien'? Eggs? Well, he gone got himself shot dead las' night, by Andy Bellefluer."

"Oh."

"Yeah, 'oh'. Tara's a motherfuckin' mess and I's had to leave her with her mama, that's how much I need the money from this job, 'cause otherwise I would not let that booze-soaked preachin' bitch anywhere nears my cousin. And here's another piece o' information probably more interestin', seein' as us humans' problems is as interestin' as ants to ya'll -"

"Not true, but go on."

"Sookie came by earlier sayin' Bill's gone and disappeared. From my very limited knowledge of vampires, it seems like ya'll like keepin' track o' one another, so I thought you'd like to know. It ain't that bad is it?" he added, when he saw her expression change dramatically at this piece of news.

Lafayette was a good source for gossip, but in this case his information appeared to actually be of some genuine interest to her. In her silence, she was thinking back to that call from Stan, the one that had set the ball rolling for catastrophe: '_Godric's gone missing_.'

"Hmm…How've have you been?"

He raised his eyebrow once more, this time at her avoidance of the question, but didn't press her.

"Okay, I suppose. People gettin' shot and goin' missin' and whatnot; the living can't really complain, right?"

"I guess not. Mind if I grab a bottle of O-positive and B-negative?"

While Lafayette warmed the two bottles in the microwave, Persy observe the people around the room. Felix was doing the same from his seat in the booth, though hopefully not in search of his next target. Arlene was taking orders from the few occupied tables, but Sookie was nowhere to be seen, more than likely having a little break after everything she had been exposed to lately. And now with Bill going missing… Persy made a mental note to investigate this occurrence further.

Carrying the two blood beverages, she took a seat across from her progeny and passed him the O-positive. He stared down at the bottle as though she were offering him a plate of salad.

"I don't know how you live on this stuff," he said, touching the bottle briefly to his lips. He grimaced and put it down. "Unless that shifter let's you bite him. Nah, he seemed too much of a square to be into something like that."

"Sam's not as, uh, 'square' as you put it, as you would think."

"Bedroom doesn't count. Everyone's different when it comes to sex. See that guy over by the pool table? The real greasy-looking one that keeps giving the waitresses sleazy looks? I'd bet you a run in the sunlight that he's into men."

Persephone glanced over at the man, whom she'd seen in the bar a few times before, once with his wife (who was just as greasy-looking); Felix was probably right about _him._

"Why a shifter, anyway? Aren't vampires supposed to not like them? 'Cause they're, like, lower in the supernatural food chain or whatever?"

"I've never been with a shifter before Sam. They're very…passionate."

"Fun."

"You betcha," she said, using her best American-style response, throwing in a sly smile for good measure.

"Your friend, that queer black guy," Felix began, in a casually un-PC kind of way, "He really seems to dig vampires."

"Why do you say that?" Persephone asked, taking her first sip of the B-negative.

"Because there's a blonde one talking to him out in the kitchen right now."

"What?"

Persephone flicked her head around and found the 'blonde one' Felix was talking about, was Pam. How had she missed that?

Quick as a flash she was in the kitchen, careful not to startle anyone along the way. Her fangs were itching to pop out, but she kept them retracted, preferring to find out what Pam was doing there, (though she was sure she knew), than to start an unnecessary conflict. Pam was in the process of passing Lafayette a few vials of vampire blood, which he was expected to sell for Eric. Before either of them could even realize they had been joined by a third party, Persephone grabbed the vials and smashed them in the sink.

"Oh, shit," Lafayette said, backing off a couple of steps as Pam's fangs appeared.

"He's done with that," Persephone told Pam, who sneered. As if she needed more of a reason to hate Persephone.

"Perhaps you would like to tell that to Eric. I'm sure he'd be _so_ understanding of your opinion."

Persephone was by no means in the mood for Pam's attitude, but for the first time she saw something that actually resembled feeling in the woman's eyes; there was something more to this ploy, something Eric had never mentioned.

"Let's talk. Sam's office is free."

Pam's face twitched as though she were holding back another scowl, but whatever problems she and Eric were having, they were big enough to motivate her into following Persephone down the hall.

Persephone closed the door behind them, both completely forgetting Lafayette, who was still in the kitchen frozen with mild shock.

"What's this all about? Eric's got humans selling V for him now?"

"It's bad," Pam replied. Though she and Persephone were renowned for not getting along, Pam knew that Eric trusted her with his life; therefore, it was probably safe to divulge certain information to her. "We don't really have a choice in this."

"I figured that."

Pam raised an eyebrow, as usual not impressed by Persephone's foreknowledge.  
>"It's Sophie-Anne"<p>

Sophie-Anne was the vampire queen of Louisiana, and also very, very egotistical. Unlike human royalty, vampire kings and queens weren't born into their position; usually they were simply selected based on a number of factors, like age, influence and knowledge. Sophie-Anne lived in a palace in New Orleans, and was well known for her hedonistic lifestyle. Persephone was fortunate to have met her only once. One time was enough for anyone.

"Why is she doing it? Surely she has enough money as it is."

"You'd think so, but no. Since vampires had to start paying taxes, she's run herself into the ground. No pun intended. She's selling her blood as a last ditch effort to stay afloat. She even had the nerve to tell Eric to sell the club and all his property just so she can keep living the way she wants to."

"What?" Persephone half-gasped. She knew the queen was selfish, but this was beyond low.

"Like I said, we don't have much of a choice. She came by with the Magistor last night; he's investigating the selling of vampire blood in our area. The bitch basically told Eric that she would be more than happy to pin it on us if we can't come up with the money she needs."

Persephone tried to let the gravity of this sink in. She took a seat on Sam's desk and then began to consider something that she had only thought about a couple of times before.

"So, thanks for the help, but I should be going now," Pam said, heading for the door.

"Wait."

She turned around and saw the seriousness on the other vampire's face. Persephone seemed genuinely determined to get them out of their current predicament. Pam listened, her expression half-skeptical, as Persephone revealed a fairly in depth plan detailing what she planned to do to help them. When she had finished, Pam stared at her in disbelief.

"I know I act like I hate you, because I do. And I feel like I should thank you somehow, but I'm not going to. But if you can pull this off…"

"I know. Don't tell Eric. Not yet."

Pam nodded and then left. Perhaps she had greatly underestimated Persephone's worth.

* * *

><p>Sam was having better luck than he had expected. Sort of.<p>

He had discovered not only his birthparents, Joe-Lee and Melinda Mickens, but also a brother, Tommy…who had just tried to get him killed. Both his mother and his brother were shifters, but his father was normal (if that's how you'd describe him). So not exactly gangly green goblins, but they weren't perfect either. But then, who is?

After grabbing his clothes from the front yard of the Mickens' rundown home and hurriedly pulling them back on, Sam burst through their front door, surprising his younger brother and father, who were seated watching TV. In less than 24-hours of knowing him, Tommy had already tried to get Sam out of his life. It had been an indirect approach, tricking Sam into running in front of a car in his dog form, and it had failed to work.

"Oh, well hi, Sam. Wasn't expecting you to be back so soon. Tommy said you left," Joe-Lee told him, dressed only in a pair of tighty-whities. Oh yeah; the Mickens were pure class.

"I'll go get your mama," he added, leaving the two brothers alone for a moment.

Sam's polite expression left as soon as his father did. He shot Tommy a dark look.  
>"I don't appreciate you trying to get me killed."<p>

Tommy gave a huff and redirected his attention to the television set.  
>"Well, I don't appreciate you coming into my house like you belong here."<p>

Both of their parents reappeared, Melinda carrying a few blankets as though she was expecting Sam to stay over for the night. After what had just happened with Tommy, he wasn't feeling so welcome anymore.

"No need for those," he explained, resuming his polite façade, "I'll be headin' back to Bon Temps tonight."

"What, now?" she asked. It was close to midnight and Bon Temps was a couple of hours drive away. Thirty-four years of separation or not, she didn't want any son of hers driving interstate in the pitch dark.

"Yeah, well, I got my life back there, just like you got your life here," Sam said, "Plus I don't want to intrude anymore than I already have."  
>He caught Tommy give a silent snort at his last few words.<p>

His parents stood in an awkward silence, unsure of what to say to that. Luckily, they were saved from having to come up with any sort of reply, by a sudden knock on the door. For the second time that evening, Joe-Lee looked surprised. Melinda, however, looked cautious; Sam was the only visitor they had gotten in a long time, and all those before him had been either police or debt-collectors.

Joe-Lee scratched his head as Tommy grabbed a shotgun and approached the door with the same amount of caution as his mother.

"Who the hell would be callin' by at this time of night?"


	2. Chapter 2: Fascination Street

**Chapter 2: Fascination Street**

Oh it's opening time  
>Down on Fascination Street<br>So let's cut the conversation  
>And get out for a bit.<br>(_The Cure_)

"Who the hell are you?"

Tommy, always top of the class in etiquette, stared at Persephone suspiciously. She stared right back at him, her eyes moving from the shotgun clamped in his hands, then back to his cautious face. He wasn't holding the gun in a threatening way, but the fact that he had it at all told her that the Mickens' weren't used to visitors, particularly ones who came calling by at night. Persephone could understand the boy's concern.

Sensing the potential for the situation to escalate, Sam quickly stepped in.  
>"This is my, uh, friend. Persephone."<p>

"Persephone?" Tommy said, as though the foreignness of the name actually offended him in some way.

Persephone wasn't listening to Tommy, however; she was looking at Sam, a little surprised about the way he'd introduced her.

"Your friend?" Melinda asked, stepping away from Joe-Lee to get a better look at the pale young woman.

"Well, my girlfriend," Sam corrected himself, sensing the inquiring tone of Persephone's gaze (if gazes could indeed have a tone).

Tommy looked from Sam to Persephone, and then to his mother. Silent thoughts moved between the two family members before Joe-Lee could pick up on anything. He was 'normal', at least, he was human without any sort of supernatural blood in him, so he wasn't able to perceive what his wife and son were now clearly sensing.

"Joe-Lee, go put some pants on. We got a woman guest present," Melinda told him.

He looked as though he were about to say something, but a stern look from Melinda sent him on his way. It had been a good diversionary tactic on her part; now the four left in the room could say what they had to without worrying about the interference of human-opinion. Husband and father or not, Joe-Lee just wasn't part of the supernatural world.

"You're datin' a vampire?" Melinda asked Sam. They both looked at Persephone to see if she had taken offence to this question, though Melinda hadn't intended any. For those who had met Persephone for the first time, (aside from other vampires, of course) they had had difficulty realizing what she was, as indeed Sam had for almost a week after their first encounter. It appeared that Melinda was far more attuned to things.

Persephone hadn't said a word since she'd knocked on the door and, at this moment, she didn't intend to; she was waiting patiently to see how things would pan out.

"I am," Sam replied to his mother slowly, waiting for the racist comments to start flying. But he had misunderstood what she'd meant by asking. It was pure curiosity, that was all; vampires and shifters weren't really known to mix. Come to think of it, vampires weren't known to be very fond of any race besides their own, and even then there was still a pretty solid hierarchy involved.

"Well, that's...Hi, I'm Melinda and this here's Tommy, Sam little brother." Melinda gestured to Tommy, who was still looking at the vampire with suspicion. It took Melinda a moment to realize why Persephone was still standing outside, but she quickly invited her in, just as Joe-Lee returned having found a pair of faded jeans. He'd even made the effort to put on a stained wifebeater.

"It's nice to meet you all. He never mentioned having a brother," Persephone said.

"Yeah, it was a bit of a surprise," Sam replied.

Tommy snorted. "Yeah."  
>He leaned the shotgun up against the wall and then plonked himself down on the Mickens' tattered-looking sofa to resume his television viewing.<p>

Melinda glared daggers at him for his rude behavior, but quickly turned her attention back to her eldest (and at this moment, politest) son.

"Ya'll can stay for a little while if you like. Just for a bite to eat or something…" Melinda caught herself as she said this, realizing how tactless it sounded in the presence of a vampire. Neither Tommy nor Joe-Lee bothered to hide their amusement at the little slip-up. Even Persephone couldn't hold back the smile that forced its way out.

"It's fine, Melinda. Thanks. Really, we gotta be goin' ," Sam assured her for the second time that night.

"If you're sure you won't wanna be stayin' then I just wanna tell you 'fore you go that we're real proud of you, Sam, and all that you've done with yourself." She paused and her expression turned morose. "I just wish we were the kind of family you could be proud of."

While Sam and Melinda said a few last things to one another, Persephone took the opportunity to look around the room. She wasn't one to judge people, not after the things she had seen throughout her long life, but she could tell almost instantly that the Mickens' weren't on the high end of the social scale. Not even the middle. Trash and empty beer bottles were scattered on both the floor and tables. The furniture was old and worn, though, oddly, the TV looked brand new. There was a faint musty odor, a combination of beer and stale sweat that was intensified by the warmth of the evening.

Persephone was almost embarrassed to think that she hadn't encountered this kind of poor before; the company she kept was usually quite wealthy and had, what the people themselves believed to be, class. But she found those types oh so very boring. The Mickens' were far more interesting.

Tommy was back to shaking his head. He wasn't happy, to say the least, about Sam's sudden arrival in their lives. It wasn't the fact that he had never been told that he had a brother, but that his mom wouldn't stop gushing over Sam as though he were her pride and joy despite the fact she had only known him for a few hours. Just as Melinda started crying, Tommy rolled his eyes and looked away. Persephone averted her eyes from the mother and son at the same instant. Their eyes met briefly.

* * *

><p>"Sorry about all that," Sam apologized as he and Persephone made their way back to Bon Temps in his car.<p>

"What do you mean?" For a split-second she thought he was apologizing about referring to her as his 'friend'. She had let that slide, but knew it would sit in the back of her mind and gnaw away silently at her subconscious.

"The Mickens…they aren't exactly what I was expecting," he said instead, sounding as though he hadn't been sure how to phrase his reply.

"Don't apologize for your family, Sam. They haven't done anything to offend me." She smiled reassuringly at him. They continued in silence for a few minutes, before Sam brought up something that had been on his mind since the last time he had been at his bar.

"Who was that guy you came into the bar with the other night?"

"Oh, that's Felix."

"Felix? Is he staying with you?"

"Yes."

One of the things he liked about Persephone, though she did tend to hide things until the last minute, was that she was always honest when questions were finally raised.

"Is he…Did you 'make' him?"

Sam asked this with his eyes planted firmly on the road. It was a bit of an uncomfortable subject, since she had once told him she liked turning those she felt a connection with. He had always wondered, that considered, what the future held for them. He certainly had no intention of becoming a vampire, but he hadn't told her that. She just knew.

"Yes, I turned him."

"How many have you made?"

"Three."

"Is Eric one of those three?"

Persephone's laugh gave him his answer to that one. Although she had made the vampire who had turned Eric, she still found it strange to imagine Eric as her own. Of course, she did have a strong bond with him, but he wouldn't have been her personal choice to make Vampire. Then again, considering those she had selected to pass the gift on to…

"So what have you been up to while I've been gone?" Sam asked, wanting to slip away from the topic of vampire creation.

"You mean the few hours that I didn't actually spend with you?"

He grinned.  
>"Yeah, I guess."<p>

"You know, nothing much has happened. After all that has gone on these past few weeks, it's a very nice change."

"Yeah," Sam replied, in a way that reminded Persephone of the way Tommy had said the exact same thing only moments earlier. She was starting to see the similarities between the brothers already.

As they reached the outskirts of Bon Temps, Persephone gave a sound of disappointment. The sun was close to rising and she had planned on getting back in time to run a few errands. They would just have to be put off until the following evening.

"What's up?" Sam asked her. He glanced at the dash's digital clock and guessed that it was the fast-approaching morning that had brought about her reaction.

"I was planning on dropping by Bill's house to see how Jessica is coping. She's having trouble adjusting to her new life."

And then a thought struck her.  
>"The bar has been rather short on staff lately, hasn't it?"<p>

"Uh-uh, I see what you're getting at."

"Oh, come on. She needs something to do. I'm sure being stuck inside an old house all night isn't helping her state of mind at the moment. It would be good for her."

"Oh, okay. I'll think about it, alright?"

They drove past the little sign that welcomed those passing through to Bon Temps and the woods around them became thicker, making the area much darker, even with the scattering of streetlamps.

"Coming back to my place?" Sam asked as they reached the homestretch.

"No. I think I better turn in for the day. Don't worry about taking me to home, though. I'll just leave from yours."

Sam nodded, but was disappointed by her answer. It wasn't like her to turn down an invitation like that; in fact she rarely needed an invitation at all. He just hoped that he hadn't done something to offend her. As a couple, they were very prone to fights. Perhaps their natures as vampire and shifter were to blame for this; both being powerful and passionate. Or maybe it was simply that they _were_ of different races. Either way, he was just happy trying to make things work. They had managed to work their way through some pretty tough issues along the way; so as the people say, 'So far, so good'.

Sam brought the car to a stop on the gravel road that doubled as his driveway. Merlotte's had closed a few hours earlier, so nobody else was around. Before they got out, Persephone leant across and gave Sam a peck on the cheek, a gesture that seemed oddly impersonal.

"I'll probably come by tomorrow night," she told him and he nodded absentmindedly, still confused about the simple 'goodnight'.

"I'll have a think about what you said about Jess," he added so that he didn't seem too distant.

"Good. I do hope you decide to hire her. She's a good kid, really."

"You want me to do it as a favor?"

"It shouldn't have to be," Persephone replied, throwing in a chuckle to show that she wasn't being completely serious.

After all, what are 'friends' for?

* * *

><p>An awful smell, both sickening and familiar, hit Persephone as she stepped inside Bill's house. Her nose crinkled, but she had been around this smell many times before, particularly in her earlier life; it was the smell that accompanied death.<p>

"Jessica?"  
>Persephone shut the front door and walked further inside.<br>"Are you home?"

Jessica stepped out from the hidden door in the wall, the one that led to her and Bill's daily resting place. The moment she had opened the door, the stench had become stronger.

"Jessica?" Persephone asked again, this time in a questioning tone.

"Um, Persy. Hi."

Her nonchalant act was fooling nobody. She quickly gave in to Persephone's impatient stare.  
>"Okay, you <em>can't<em> tell Bill, alright? Wherever he is. I did something bad…accidently though."

Persephone sighed and gave a knowing nod.  
>"You killed someone, didn't you?"<p>

"Kinda. You're not mad are you?"

Persephone shook her head.  
>"No, but I am disappointed. What have we told you about mainstreaming?"<p>

"I know, I know. But Bill's such a hypocrite. He feeds on Sookie."

"Sookie is his. It is allowed."

"Yeah, well, I bet if Hoyt was 'mine' or whatever, you guys wouldn't let me bite him."

"If he gave you his consent, I wouldn't stop-"

"Yeah but you're not Bill. He's so…" She gave a frustrated growl.

"Where's the body now?" Persephone asked her, already building up a fairly good plan regarding how to dispose of it.

"Under the house."

"How long has it been there?"

Jessica sighed and leant back against the door she had just emerged from, trying to recall how many nights ago she had ended the man's life.  
>"Maybe, like, two, three days ago? What are you going to do with it?"<p>

Persephone approached her with an expression so determined, that she quickly stepped aside. The older vampire pushed against the wall, which released the door, and made her way over to the trapdoor that led down under the house. Crouching down, Persephone pulled the hatch open and made a face when the odor hit her full-force.

"Pretty bad, huh?" Jessica commented as she leant in the doorway watching Persephone work. Persephone made a noise like she was clearing her throat.

"It's no bouquet of roses, that's for sure."

She disappeared through the opening and reappeared a second later carrying the body of the deceased. His face had begun to turn a horrible shade of purple.

"Actually, I may have an idea of how to 'get rid of him', so to speak."

* * *

><p>A few minutes later, the two vampires were standing on the bank of the lagoon near Persephone's house. Jessica was standing over the body, an axe clasped in her hands.<p>

"Do I really gotta do this?" she asked, her voice one of a child who had been asked to do their chores.

"It's you mess," Persephone told her; "You have to clean it up."

Cringing, Jessica raised the axe above her head and brought it down on the shoulder of the dead man. It helped that, as a vampire, she had a good amount of power behind the swing; it took the arm clean off the first time around.

Luckily, Persephone didn't get many visitors, and the ones she did get were usually either of the shifter or the vampire variety. In the latter's case, the scene they were currently enacting would not have been such a big deal. As if to prove this, Felix strolled out from the house wearing jeans and a black t-shirt with the words 'IT'S NOT EASY BEING SLEAZY' written in white block letters across the front. With one hand in his pocket and the other wrapped around a bottle of Tru Blood O-Negative, he looked like he could have easily fit in with a group of men around a barbecue.

Jessica regarded him steadily before swinging the blade down on the second arm. He came to a stop beside Persephone, who had her arms folded as she watched the young vampire taking care of her mistake.

"I remember disposing of my first body," Felix reminisced, taking a sip of blood.

"Too bad that was the only one you ever _did_ dispose of," Persephone commented, recalling the many times he had managed to evade police capture. He had never bothered covering up the things he had done, preferring to leave whatever house he was staying in, rather than dispose of the corpses that had piled up in his bedroom.

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Jessica asked, after placing the axe against the man's neck but hesitating.

She had witnessed some pretty gross things since becoming a vampire but this was too much for her; Persephone could see that. All she wanted was for the girl to learn her lesson and, clearly, she had.

"Look."

Persephone pointed to the murky water of the lagoon, from which a scaly head had just emerged. Jessica picked up one of the arms and tossed it over to the shadowy bulge, which snapped it up without hesitation and took it underwater to eat. Two more heads poked up out of the surface. Persephone was quite fond of the family of alligators that populated her little piece of water. They shared a lot in common; both technically cold-blooded, both feared and both predators.

Jessica stared out at them with less admiration and bent down to pick up the second arm, but Persephone placed a hand on her shoulder.

"It's alright. Felix will finish up for you."

"I will?" he asked, before draining the last of his drink. He didn't have to ask; he knew that she could command him to if she really wanted. He tossed the bottle aside as he took up Jessica's position, and it shattered in the grass.

"You can clean that up, too, when you're done," Persephone frowned.


	3. Chapter 3: Fair Lady of the Plains

**Chapter 3: Fair Lady of the Plains**

There was a fair lady who lived on the plains,  
>She helped me herd cattle through hard stormy rains,<br>She helped me one season all through the roundup,  
>She would drink with me from the cold bitter cup,<br>She loved the red liquor which serves a man so,  
>She was a fair lady as white as the snow.<br>(_**Glenn Ohrlin**_)

"This place is closing down."

"What? Don't tell me that."

Persephone gave Eric a look of disbelief, her raised eyebrow a sign that she thought he was joking. He wasn't.

"They're going out of business. It's happening right across the town, across the entire country."

"Goddamn 'Industrial Revolution'. What a fuckin' killjoy."

Stan crossed his arms, looking remarkably like an upset child. His eyes moved around the room in search of his next conquest. He spotted her sitting at the bar wearing a frilly green and black corset-dress. "Oh well, better get what we can, while we can," he grinned.

"When's the next dance?" Eric asked Persephone, watching Stan take a seat next to the woman who was now grinning and flirting. She had no idea what Stan had in store for her.

"It's in about five minutes," Persephone told him.

She stretched her arms out above her head and her breasts to rise just a little bit in her tight bustier. Part of the costume for the dance, the blue and black bustier, along with her blue and black frilly skirt, brought out the icy color of her eyes. Eric watched her and felt the woman beside him shift in her seat.

"Do we really have to stay here for another dance?" Pam asked.

Unlike Persephone, she hadn't really taken to the cancan dancing; though she didn't mind watching the girls. But they had spent almost six months in this town, and she was growing bored. As a young vampire, she was more prone to restlessness than the others, just as Stan would have been, too, if it weren't for the constant supply of sex and blood that the saloon had to offer.

"Let Persephone have her fun. And then afterwards, perhaps she'll bring us a couple of dancers to share at the inn."

He turned around to see how this idea sat with the potential-procurer, but she had already left to take her place at the back of the stage. A man stepped out from behind the curtain to announce that the cancan girls were just warming up for their audience, a speech which received a number of catcalls and wolf-whistles from the men who waited in anticipation.

Stan was still at the bar with his girl for the night; he could have left, since she had been willing enough, but he never passed up the chance to see his maker dance. Persephone seemed to get such a thrill out of it, and had taken part in the performance every night since they had arrived in the small town.

Music started up and the curtains were thrust open, revealing the scarcely clad girls who bounded out of their position and onto the stage. Persephone was in the middle of the line, with one arm around the waist of a buxom red-head in a magenta gown, and the other around the middle of a thin blonde in a green corset-dress. As they danced, their skirts kicked up in the air, revealing their undergarments to the entranced crowd. For just this moment, the men in the room forgot their whiskey and gin, but the girls did nothing to help sober them; they were drunk on the movements of legs, skirts and figures hugged in tight costumes.

As the music reached its crescendo, the girls shook their skirts in a furious movement before simultaneously kicking their legs high into the air. Some were able to hold the pose for a few moments after the song, each grinning with the excitement of their own seduction. Persephone held her leg up straight, her hands resting on her waist. She had no problem holding the pose, since she was a little more powerful than the other girls, and her face was lit up the brightest. At least, that's how Eric saw it. He didn't realize he was smiling as he gazed at her. He was one of many men, though, and her sparkling eyes only met his for a minute before drifting across the room to check the reactions of her audience. As usual, the rowdy observers were made even rowdier by the performance and, as it was every night while the girls began drifting off the stage, men began moving up to try their luck.

The women that had been beside Persephone took a minute to utter a few pleasantries to her, before making their own ways towards the edge of the stage. Persephone stopped them. She had a few words and, a little surprised but nonetheless interested, the girls agreed to go with her to meet her friends.

Over by the bar, Stan broke from his distracted thoughts and led his new girl up the stairs to one of the rooms above.

Eric greeted the two girls politely and Pam regarded them with a forced smile. She was overwhelmingly hungry and she was eyeing off the red-head. She reached out and grabbed the fan that sat on the table, opening it and waving it in front of her face to hide the fact that her fangs had just popped out.

Persephone threw back her head and laughed at something the blonde dancer had just said to her. Eric watched them and felt a different sort of hunger building up inside of him. As the group began to make their way towards the door, Eric grabbed his hat off the table, placing it back on and catching Persephone's gaze as she waited for him.

They crossed the rocky dirt road to the inn they had been staying in whilst visiting the town.  
>It wasn't long before both dancers were pinned down, their necks, wrists and thighs providing flowing crimson streams for each vampire. Eric watched Persephone as she drank from the blonde's femoral artery. She didn't want much and was soon finished, licking the last of the blood from the small wound she had made. Glancing up at Eric, she offered him the blonde's wrist.<p>

"Do you want more?"

"I said, do you want more?"

Eric glanced up at his newest dancer, Yvetta, as she slid casually down the metal pole that stood atop one of the raised dance platforms.

"That will be all," he told her, making sure she knew that she had displeased him by breaking his train of thought.

He wasn't sure why he had thought back to that day in particular, but Persephone had been on his mind quite a lot recently. It had been her idea for them to take their new (or in her case new_est_) progenies on a small trip together. Eric had immediately disliked Stan, but Persephone and Pam had gotten along quite well. He still didn't understand what had caused the major rift between them. Persephone had loved the Old West, what with all its interesting sights and people. She found the culture fascinating. He hadn't seen her since she had come to Fangtasia with her shifter.

He had to call her.

Pam had returned from the shifter's bar acting very strange, he thought. Something was up. And with Bill's disappearance and the Magistor's interference in his orders from the queen, the last thing he wanted was to find out something was wrong with Persephone. Since they were old friends, he felt only obliged to help where he could.

He smirked and took out his phone.

* * *

><p>A jukebox was being delivered to Merlotte's when Jessica and Persephone arrived.<p>

"Where do you want this thing?" the round, sweaty delivery man was asking Sam, who looked perplexed.

"I didn't order this," he told the man, as the new item was wheeled in.

"Some gal did. Said it was a gift."

Sam caught sight of Persephone as she waited for the man to push the jukebox through the door.

"You order this?" he asked her. She smiled. Surprise.

"After Jason destroyed your stereo with that chainsaw, I thought the bar might need some other source of musical entertainment."

Jason, who was seated at the bar watching the delivery man with mild interest and drinking a beer, glanced over as he heard his name.

"What? I ain't payin' for it."

"It's already been paid for," Persephone assured him. He seemed to consider saying something else, but decided against it, taking another swig of his beer.

"It already got music in it?" he asked.

"Ready to go," she smiled again, "A good selection, too."

Sam was far from protesting, but he still seemed unsure about the gift.

"You know I got rules in this bar, right?," he asked Persephone.

She raised an eyebrow. Sure, bars had rules nowadays; no brawling, no alcohol served to under-21s, smoking only in the smoking section, hands off the barmaids and rowdy behavior was generally frowned upon. She couldn't see how any of these applied to her current situation; although maybe she had broken that first rule a few weeks earlier.

"No dancing," Sam told her.

She stared at him, looking a little disappointed.

"Really? Well, I'm not advocating it," she replied, though she did quite like dancing and knew that, if he was in the right kind of mood, he didn't mind it much either.

"It'll add atmosphere and it's interactive. I thought it would make a nice addition to the bar."

"Oh you did, did you?"

"I can take it back if you want. I'm sure Felix would enjoy the novelty of having it in the hou-"

Sam pressed his finger to her lips to hush her. She smiled sweetly and he almost forgot about her odd behavior the night before. Glancing over his shoulder, she saw something she hadn't noticed before.

"Your family's here."

Sam sighed; it wasn't a particularly happy sigh, either.

"Yeah, they got here at around lunchtime. Ain't lookin' to leave any time soon, either."  
>He whispered that last part.<p>

Melinda spotted Persephone looking over at them, and gave her a little wave. Joe-Lee looked up, frowned, and then proceeded to have a few words with his wife, who seemed to speak back to him very sternly.  
>Tommy turned in his seat to see who his mother had been waving at. He gave his usual attitude-inspired frown.<p>

"Have you given any more thought to hiring Jessica?" Persephone asked Sam, tearing her eyes away from the Mickens' table.

"Well, we are short on staff, 'specially since Sookie left for a few days."

"She did?"

"She thinks she knows where Bill is."

Like most humans, Sam seemed to believe that vampires always knew what was going on with other vampires in the area. Having only just heard the news of Bill's sudden disappearance, Persephone hadn't had enough time to gather many thoughts or theories. She had put it on the backburner for the moment.

"So that's a 'yes'?"

"Huh?"

"Jessica."

Persephone called her over from her spot by the bar. She had been leaning against the counter rather casually, observing those around her and receiving a bit of attention from some sordid-looking men in the back corner. She always looked more bright and perky when she was out of the house.

"Yeah?"

"Come over here a minute."

She approached Sam and the other vampire with an expression bordering on suspicious. Sam regarded her for a minute and then nodded.

"How would you like to work here?" Persephone asked.

"Huh? Really?"

She looked as though she wasn't sure whether to be happy about this or not, a smile twitching at her lips. She looked to Sam.

"There's a job if you want it," he said.

"Awesome! I've never had a job before. I can only work nights" – she giggled at this obvious bit of information – "but I'll just be glad to get out of that damn house."

"Well, you can start tomorrow night. How's six? You'll be up by then, right?"

"Better make it seven," Persephone said, staring out at the sky as though she could somehow predict when the sun would set the following day.

"Alright, then. I think I've got a spare uniform for you in my office," he told her, turning to go and get it. Jessica grinned at Persephone excitedly, and then quickly trotted off after her new boss.

Persephone took a seat at the bar, which was being tended by a man she hadn't met before. She gave him a polite smile of greeting before swiveling around to face out towards the booths. She began to wonder if Felix had actually done what she had asked him to, when the vibration of the phone in her pocket interrupted her thoughts.

ERIC.

"I wasn't expecting to hear from you so soon," she answered, her tone neutral.

Over by the jukebox, which was now plugged in and fully-functional, an old-jeans-and-flannel-shirt-clad man was debating with himself over which song to choose. His earnest expression gave him the appearance of someone looking to solve a complex mathematical equation. Van Halen or Lynyrd Skynyrd? Journey or Cyndi Lauper? Decisions, decisions.

In the end, he settled for Def Leppard's _Pour Some Sugar on Me_. Way to add a touch of class to a bar.

"I was thinking of…Where are you?" Eric asked, dropping his initial sentence as he heard the song in the background.

"Merlotte's," Persephone replied, as though she thought he knew that already (which of course he did).

Sam came back out of his office and raised an eyebrow at the song that now sounded through the bar. It wasn't loud, exactly; the kind of volume where you know what song is playing, but don't have to raise your voice in order to have a conversation with someone. Persephone gave him an entertained smile, but when he noticed she was on the phone, he glanced around to see what needed to be done around the bar.

"I've been meaning to talk to you. Come by tonight," Eric suggested. "Persephone?"

She had become momentarily distracted by a small commotion over at the Mickens' table. It appeared that Sam wasn't happy with his parents' decision to give Tommy alcohol, seeing as he was underage; nineteen, in fact. That surprised her a little. The age, not the alcohol giving.

Joe-Lee, drunk as a skunk, stood up and looked as though he were sizing up his oldest son, preparing for a fight. Tommy was shaking his head, but looked like he was used to this kind of behavior from his father.

"Shall I call back at a more convenient time?" Eric asked, sounding a lot like Pam with his derisive tone.

"I'm here," Persephone assured him, watching Sam hustle his family out of the bar. "I'll be there."

She hung up her phone without any further words, leaving Eric on the other end completely unsatisfied with their conversation. Sam leant back on the counter beside her seat and blew out a huff of breath.

"Maybe I should of just left them well alone," he said, staring at the empty doorway.

When Persephone didn't reply, he glanced over and found her doing something on her phone. She had a look of concentration on her face that made him smile.

"You comin' by tonight?," he asked casually.

She punched in a number on her phone and pressed it to her ear.

"I might," she replied, an attempt at teasing which would have worked better if she weren't so distracted. "I just need to make a few calls and run a few errands."

Sam nodded at her as she began talking to whomever it was she had called. Feeling a little blown off, he walked over to the jukebox to see what music he had to look forward to whilst in the bar. She had been right; it was a good selection.

"It's Persephone. Yes, I need to know if that property is still available. Good. No, I've already inspected it once. I'll come by tomorrow evening to settle it. Okay. Yes. Good, I'll see you then."

She ended the call and dialed another number. It took much longer than the previous call for someone to answer her, and whilst she was waiting Felix strode in. He was wearing the same outfit as earlier, yet had somehow managed to not get any stains on it. Like most post-blood occasions, he was smoking a cigarette.

"You can't smoke in this section," Sam told him.

Felix looked down at the cigarette in his hand as though he had never seen it before, and then glanced back up at Sam with an expression that would have made a cat's fur stand on end. Sam risked a glance at Persephone, who was observing the scene calmly. He decided not to back down. Nodding as though he knew Sam was right, Felix put the cigarette out on his own palm without so much as a wince. He smirked at Sam's disturbed expression.

Meanwhile, Persephone finally got an answer.  
>"Yes, I'd like to make an appointment to see the magistor."<p> 


	4. Chapter 4: Coming Up From Behind

**Chapter 4: Coming Up From Behind**

She's the underdog,  
>Gonna take a mighty swipe<br>At the high horse,  
>I'm telling you, sir,<br>She's coming up from behind.  
>(<em><strong>Marcy Playground<strong>_)

Saturday night was one of the busiest nights of the week for Fangtasia, just like any other club or bar. It was full of tourists and hopeful fangbangers by the time Persephone arrived to see Eric. He was seated in his 'throne', watching the humans as they filled up at the bar and tried their luck with the few vampires that populated the establishment.

He became more alert when he spotted her crossing the main floor and felt his suspicions resurface when he noticed Pam give her a tiny nod of acknowledgment. Something was definitely going on, and he hated to be out of the loop.

"Eric," Persephone greeted him. Her demeanor was very businesslike, which surprised him. He didn't like it.

"Is this because I offended your shifter?" he asked, returning to his bored observation of the bar patrons.

"I take it Pam kept her word, then."

She hadn't really expected Pam to be able to keep something of this magnitude from her maker, but judging by Eric's calm expression, she had managed to do just that.

"What's this all about? Are you planning some sort of hostile take-over?"  
>He smiled at the thought, but then quickly remembered that the whole 'Persephone-the-Pushover' was just an act. "Let's go to my office."<p>

"I'd rather stay out here," she replied.

He stared at her for a moment and tried to read her expression. Whatever she was thinking, she was keeping it well hidden; an ability she'd had thousands of years to perfect.

They settled down at an empty table and glanced around to make sure that no one who would even bother to eavesdrop was within hearing distance; but the vampires were occupied with the humans and vice-versa.

"So, what is it that seems to have you and Pam on borderline-friendly terms again?"

"I made her a proposal."

"I see."

He cocked an eyebrow in a suggestive way, before waving over one of his waitresses. A skinny, pale, Goth girl made her way over and bowed her head deeply, as though submitting to his every whim. She looked pathetic.

"Get my guest and I a bottle of Tru Blood," he ordered, not bothering to give specific types. When the waitress glanced briefly at Persephone, the vampire shook her head.

"Don't bother for me," she told her.

"I insist," Eric said.

Persephone shook her head again and he frowned, waving the waitress away like a fly. She returned a few moments later with two bottles. Persephone thanked her as she placed the bottles on the table, despite not having wanted anything; Eric completely ignored the human's presence. He gestured for Persephone to begin explaining.

"Pam explained your, uh, 'problems' with the queen and the Magister."

"That has nothing to do with you."

"I can help."

Just as he had been about to say 'We don't need your help', he stopped himself. This wasn't the time for arrogance, and he knew it would be better to hear her out, if only to humor her.

"How?"

"I've been considering my current position in this state. It didn't matter much when Godric was around; I was more than happy to be by his side in Texas. But I think it's about time I asserted myself in the hierarchy."

Eric was listening intently. He certainly hadn't expected anything like this.

"What are you saying?"

"I'm going to challenge the queen."

His face went blank and he glanced around as though expecting to see Sophie-Ann glaring furiously in their direction.

"That's insane."

"Why? I'm much older than she is. Also, I would like to think, more highly regarded, by other royals and by the Elders. She's steadily losing power and popularity and she knows it. Having you sell blood for her is desperate, Eric. And her asking you to sell your business just so she can continue her hideous lifestyle is beyond ridiculous. I think the Louisiana vampires are ready for a new queen."

Eric was silent for a long time. He finished off both bottles of blood and stared down at the table while he gathered his thoughts.

"How do you intend to pull this off?" he finally asked.

"I've already made plans to meet with the magister to discuss any legal issues, and then after that I'll need to take it up with the Elders. But I do plan on confronting Sophie-Ann. We may be able to reach some sort of agreement."

Eric snorted. "Oh, I highly doubt that. Desperate or not, Sophie-Ann is a proud bitch. She isn't going to go down easily."

"And I don't expect her to."

Persephone paused and met his eyes.

"I'm doing this for you, Eric. I have no need for power. I'll take no pleasure in it if I succeed. But I don't intend on sitting by while someone like her tries to ruin you. However, I'll need you to do something for me."

"And what might that be?" he asked. He felt a little dazed by all this, but if she was willing to risk everything for his sake, the least he could do was give her something in return.

"I need you to find Bill and make sure he's alright. I'm presuming you have some idea of where he is, seeing as Sookie has gone looking for him."

"Why would you presume that I know anything about his human?"

He paused. Of course he knew what going on with Sookie. He'd been keeping tabs on her since they had first met. But he wanted to hold up his clueless act a little longer.

"I heard that you tricked her into drinking your blood," Persephone told him, throwing in a 'tut-tut' for good measure.

"Hypocrite."

"Liar."

They glared at one another for a little while, before a smile twitched at Eric's lips.

"He's in Jackson."

"What would he be doing in Jackson?"

"I'm not entirely sure, but Russell Edgington sent a couple of his werewolves to find Sookie, too. I sent her off with another Were that owed me a favor."

"I didn't know you kept Were company," Persephone said, purposely mocking him.

"At least I'm not sleeping with a shifter."

"That's a low blow, Northman."

"Besides, I don't 'keep' Were company. The Were's father owes me money. I said I would clear his debt if he did this for me."

"How nice of you. But those things aside, will you go?"

"If it is what you wish, then I will locate Bill. Why do you care anyway?"

"Bill's an old friend, just as you are. I like look out for my friends."

"That you do." Eric's lips curled up slightly at the corners and his gaze became distant once more. "So, _are _you still hanging around with that shifter?"

"Sam?" she asked, knowing full well that Eric disliked hearing his name. "Yes, we're still together. Why do you ask?"

"I won't be able to make it to Jackson for a few days."

Persephone smirked at his avoidance of the question and then recalled the reason she had had her run in with Pam in the first place. "Another thing; Lafayette is no longer to deal V for you."

"Oh, but I just gave him a new car today for being such a good salesman. Besides, Sophie-Ann will become suspicious if her blood-income ceases to…come in."

"I'll need either Pam or yourself to check in on Felix and Jessica whilst I meet with the magistor. I should only be gone a day, if that. Jessica should be fine. Felix…well, just check in on him. Please."  
>She brushed her lips across his cheek before leaving. He didn't move for at least half an hour after that, his thoughts in an unpleasant muddle. Then he grinned as he imagined the look on Sophie-Ann's face when she found out she had been replaced.<p>

* * *

><p>Merlotte's was closed by the time Persephone strolled up the dirt road that led to the parking lot. With her mind all a clutter, she wasn't in the mood for anything more than laying down to rest. Hoping that Sam had already gone to bed, she found herself in luck; he was fast asleep.<p>

Nestling up close behind him, she closed her eyes and let her mind drift.

* * *

><p>Sam was woken in the early hours of the morning by a strange beeping noise. Turning over, he found Persephone perched on the edge of the bed staring at the source of the noise; his security-alarm monitor. A little red light blinked to tell him he was being robbed. Persephone was staring at it with a disturbed expression that was a little off-putting.<p>

When Sam realized what was going on, he jumped to his feet and quickly pulled on a pair of jeans and a shirt.

"What are doing just sitting there? Why didn't you say anything?" he asked Persephone. Without giving her the opportunity to reply, he gave a growl of irritation and left.

Feeling a little tense, Persephone left for her own home. Sam could deal with a burglar on his own. Well, him and the baseball bat he'd taken with him.

* * *

><p>"I'm going to be away for a few hours tomorrow night."<p>

"Yeah, and?"

Felix was sitting on the bank of the bayou with his legs stretched out in front of him. He didn't seem to mind the fact that he had witnessed the frenzy of feeding alligators in that very same bayou just hours before. He smiled up at his maker mischievously.

"Will you stick to the bottled blood?" Persephone asked.

He gave this a little thought before nodding. He could be good when he wanted to, which wasn't very often.

"Where are you going, anyways?"

"I have an appointment with someone."

"Is it the doctor? Did that shifter knock you up?"

He chuckled and skipped a rock across the still surface of the water. When he looked back up at her, he saw that her expression had fallen a little. She quickly tried to correct this, but it was too late; he had already figured it out.

"I thought you hated kids," he said.

"No, that's you," she replied.

"Right. Well, I didn't mean to upset you. I just don't know when to stop sometimes, you know?"

"I certainly do," she said.

She took a seat next to him on the cold earth of the bank and they watched as a couple of ibises flew across the water and landed on the other side. There was a scuffling noise amongst the reeds and then a sharp shriek as one of the birds was greeted by one of the alligators.  
>The vampires stared over at the commotion blankly.<p>

"Huh," Felix commented.


	5. Chapter 5: New World in My View

**Chapter 5: New World in My View**

I got the new world in my view  
>On my journey I pursue<br>I said I'm running, running for the city  
>I got the new world in my view.<br>(_**King Britt**_)

"You're happy with the price? Are you _sure_ that you're ready to settle?"

The real estate agent looked as nervous as a whore in a church (a very elegant phrase that Persephone had picked up in Texas…from Stan, of course). He had agreed to meet her at the convenient time of seven p.m., but Persephone was sure that he hadn't volunteered for the job; he had probably _been_ volunteered by the same human who had offered her the piece of real estate she had been admiring for a number of months now. That same human owed her a big favor, so she was now cashing it in; instead of the usual few months it took to buy and move into a house, what with all the paperwork and legal issues, the man had waved most of it and she would now be the proud owner of a new home by the end of the night.

"I already told Mr. Bryce that I was ready to settle. I even have the check ready. Here."

She passed him the piece of paper and his eyes widened. It was a lot of money, to say the least, but for her to just pass it off like it was nothing, that's what really amazed him. He was under the impression that nearly all vampires were wealthy, either from their centuries of saving what they earned, or (more likely, he thought) from their centuries of stripping their victims of any riches they owned. This wasn't true, though…not all vampires were wealthy.

"And here's your copy of the deed. All the necessary documents are in this envelope."

He passed her the items and started to walk away, a little too eagerly it seemed, before remembering one last thing: "Ah, the keys." He passed them to their new owner and hurried off towards his car.

"Don't try running off with that money, now," Persephone called out to him, "because I will find you!"

The agent fumbled for his keys and tried to unlock his car as calmly as he could, looking back at the vampire and pretended to laugh off the joke. He drove off so fast that his tires sprayed up pebbles in the car's wake.

Persephone was left grinning on the large marble porch of her new house.

* * *

><p>Her appointment to meet with the magister wasn't until nine, and she arrived fifteen minutes early, mainly to scope out her surroundings. Tonight the Magister was in the Alabama vampire courts, which were situated outdoors, towards the middle of a dank looking forest. He was seated in a throne-like chair that reminded her very much of Eric's chair back in Fangtasia. A scruffy, young, blonde woman was kneeling in the clearing before him, sobbing for mercy. Her cheeks were stained with blood and every now and then she gave a scream of anguish.<p>

From what Persephone could gather from listening in to the magister's officials, she was being charged with the murder of her own progeny. Persephone frowned and stepped back into the woods. There was another scream and then a sickening gluggy sound, followed by a sound like someone throwing a bucket of water on the ground. The vampire hadn't had the money to pay the massive fine, so they had staked her. It didn't exactly seem just, but that was the vampire courts for you.

Stepping out from behind the tree she had been using as a buffer between herself and the discomforting scene, Persephone caught the eye of the magister, who raised an unimpressed eyebrow at her and motioned for her to approach. She had never seen someone look so bored in her entire life.

"Make this quick. I have places to be."

"Would it be possible to make this a private meeting?" Persephone asked him, ignoring the derisive looks she was receiving from his officials. His expression was much the same as theirs.

The Magister stared at her for a long moment before finally telling the surrounding vampires to leave. Once they were alone, and not without a few disgruntled growls from the retreating henchmen, the Magister narrowed his eyes.

"Persephone, I don't recall ever having seen you in any of the courts, or heard of you ever being charged with anything, so I find it hard to see any reason why you should want to meet with me. As I said, I don't often meet with vampires of no ranking, but I must admit I was curious when I was told that an 'infamous' vampire such as yourself should want to see me so specifically. Now, what drove you to such a decision?"

"I wanted to discuss a few legal matters with you."

"Well, they can't be to do with your progeny Stan, since I heard he bit the dust recently, though I remember him appearing before me a number of times in the past."

Holding back the biting anger that flew up inside her like a vicious dog pulling at its chain, Persephone maintained a calm exterior.

"I intend to challenge Queen Sophie-Ann for her position."

The Magister laughed; a little chuckle that escalated into full, booming laughter.

"You can't be serious! That is beyond treason. It would be easier to just stake you now and get it over with."

"I will attempt negotiations with her first. And if that doesn't work, I'll go to the Elders."

The Magister's expression changed dramatically at her last few words. The Elders were a group of Ancients who far outranked him, his officials and the queen herself. They had never really evolved to suit the ever-changing world, and were both feared and respected by all vampires who knew of them. There were plenty of stories about them, but like most infamous persons, it was hard to separate the truth from the fear-inspired myths.

"If you came here tonight looking for my advice, it would be for you to stop what you are trying to do and go back to the coffin you crawled out from."

"Fine, but just tell me one thing; if the queen refuses, and the Elders deny my request, what will happen then?"

"Then?" the Magister said, "Then, my dear, you will be charged with treason and one of my officials will drive a stake through your heart. That's all."

* * *

><p>Fangtasia was empty. It was a Sunday night, so the club wasn't open in the first place, but finding Eric sitting up on his chair with his eyes staring off blankly ahead of him was an eerie sight. Persephone discovered Pam in Eric's office and was surprised to see her speaking to Felix. It wasn't a particularly animated or friendly conversation, but they were talking nonetheless. Persephone had to do a double-take; the scene was almost too bizarre for her mind to comprehend.<br>Both vampires glanced up at her.

The three of them walked out to the main floor and Persephone managed to bring Eric out of his trance. He blinked a few times and it took him a moment to comprehend that she had returned to tell him the outcome of her meeting. She first explained the main ideas that had been brought up, all of which surprised Felix since she was yet to tell him anything about her plans. Then she eventually came to the conclusive comments.

"Basically, if I fail, I'm going to be staked."

The ensuing silence hung over them like a fog. Eric's eyes were round and staring. Pam's face was near-blank, except for a cocked eyebrow, her equivalent of a gasp. Felix's thoughts on what she had just revealed were more easily deciphered. He sat backwards on a chair, his head resting on his forearms which were perched on top of the metal frame; he was shaking his head.

"Then you should stop this now," Eric spoke, breaking the tension, but consequently creating more.

"It's too late. If I don't follow through, then word will reach the queen of what I had intended to do, and she will sick her guards on me. Of course, I would defeat them, but I would be forced to pay compensation for their deaths and then she would only send more."

"Why don't you just kill the queen?" Felix asked, as if it were the more logical solution. The three older vampires stared at him, before going to their original conversation.

"In a few days time, I'll be going to meet with her to negotiate."

"You sound confident," Pam commented, her hands on her hips. She was wearing a slinky, dark-pink dress with bright-pink heels and pink lipstick; overall, she gave the impression of Fuck-You-Fangs Barbie.

"Well, seeing as it's try-or-die at the moment, I figure it's better to 'try'. And then just hope that it all turns out for the best."

"You mentioned the Elders?" Eric asked, "Surely you have some sway with them. After all, you basically are one of them."

"My thoughts exactly," Persephone replied. Her gaze fell to the floor, a gesture that seemed to suggest to them all that it was the end of the conversation. No use going in circles.

She suddenly became very alert, like a hunting dog picking up the scent of a rabbit. Her teeth sprang out and she turned to Pam.

"Watch Felix."

"I'm not your fucking babysitter," Pam replied in a fairly even voice, but her comment was lost on Persephone, who shot out of the bar without another word. Eric followed.

* * *

><p>The small community of Hotshot, which lay on the outskirts of Bon Temps, was reknowned for its odd inhabitants. No one in Bon Temps (no one human, at least) really knew the full extent of said oddness, but a strange smell hit Persephone as she swept in and knocked aside the man who was attacking Lafayette. Eric, never one to miss an opportunity to overpower a human, proceeded to pick up one of the attackers by the scruff of his shirt and hold him up like a helpless kitten. In this case, that wasn't far from the truth. The Hotshot locals were far from being human, even without all the inbreeding.<p>

Persephone growled at one of the men as they approached her, and they were smart enough to back off; you didn't have to be literate to know that attacking a vampire was a very bad idea. She threw a glance over her shoulder at Lafayette, whose eyes were round with surprise. He was shaking too, but whether that was from fear or anger, she couldn't tell. What she _had_ managed to work out, however, was Lafayette's business in this small settlement. A case containing vials of vampire blood sat in the dirt nearby, a little messy from the scuffle that had broken out. Persephone picked it up and dusted it off, while Eric had a word to the townsfolk; something along the lines of 'If you intend to live beyond tonight, I suggest you return to your ill-constructed shacks'.

Persephone carried the bag over to Lafayette's car, which had taken a fair beating from the unfriendly individuals, and set it down on the hood. Her expression was stern. She glanced from Lafayette to Eric.

"Eric? You said yesterday that Sophie-Ann was likely to become suspicious, should the money from her blood-sales cease to come in."  
>Eric nodded. Persephone sighed, but continued her train of thought on the matter.<br>"From now on you'll bring the blood to me. I shall dispose of it and give you the money for it's worth."

Just as Eric was about to ask 'Is that wise?' he decided against it. If she was willing to attempt a somewhat-hostile takeover (no matter how civilized she tried to make it seem), he saw no point in questioning her decisions against the queen any further. However, he still took issue with her intervening with the queen's orders just to save a human from…inconvenience.

"So I don't gotta sell this shit no more?" Lafayette put eloquently.

"No," Persephone replied, and then noticing a hint of indecision on his face, added, "However it's only fair that you still receive your usual percentage from sales."

"Persephone!" Eric growled, though it was closer to a purr.

She would be out of pocket in this deal, but she didn't seem to mind, which annoyed Eric all the more. Since vampire blood was the most expensive drug on the black market at the moment, it was also what Lafayette received most of his money from dealing, and since it was vampires that had roped him into their business in the first place, it seemed only fair that a vampire should provide some compensation to him.

"Unless you feel that it falls under your responsibility to ensure he receives some form of payment?" Persephone asked Eric. That shut him up. Money was the second most important thing to him, after blood. Well, maybe third most…

"You'll be paying for the damage to his car, though, of course."

Eric scowled, but didn't refuse. A few moments later they were seated inside the damaged vehicle, headed for Shreveport. If Felix hadn't been waiting (presumably) in Fangtasia, Persephone would have insisted that she and Eric make their own ways to their separate residences.

Her phone began ringing, since she had finally figured out how to take it off 'vibrate'. Felix had been messing around with it earlier, insisting that he was just putting in his new number (since he had 'lost' his phone recently), and now she knew what he had been up to. Her ringtone was now 'Walk Like an Egyptian', and she could imagine just imagine the kick Felix must have gotten from changing it. Eric snorted. At least someone found it funny. Lafayette was a little too ill at ease to find anything remotely humorous. Not that he would have understood the reference.

"Hey, how'd you like that ringtone, huh?" Felix said once Persephone had answered the call, "I think I'm going to get you one of those phones that you can program to play different songs for different callers."

She could hear the grin in his voice. Knowing that she generally like callers to get straight to their reason for calling, he said, "I just wanted to let you know that I'm heading back to Bon Temps. Seeing as I have no idea where the new house is, I might just hang around Merlotte's for a while. And don't worry; I won't stop for any snacks along the way."

He gave a little chuckle just before he hung up, which told Persephone that his last reassurance hadn't been 100% truthful. Then again, maybe he was just toying with her.

Eric answered his phone not long after, having had it on the more tactful 'vibrate' mode. Lafayette threw a nervous glance at Persephone, but she wasn't paying attention. She was evaluating a new situation that had just revealed itself by reading Eric's minute expressions. From the other end of the call, she heard Pam say, "We're being raided. By the magistor."

So he hadn't been lying when he'd said he had places to be. He just hadn't mentioned that those places included the business of one of her closest friends. The man sure worked fast.

Eric began rolling the window down and Persephone realized what he was about to do. With the slightest jerk of his head, Eric told her not to follow him. Considering the 'mission' she was about to undertake, one that would be frowned upon by the vampire law, she decided that this was probably a good idea. Eric flew out the window like a whisp of smoke. Lafayette did a double take when he realized Eric's seat beside him was now empty.

"Why the fuck ya'll always doin' that?"

Persephone gave no response.

They reached Lafayette's humble abode not long after. He didn't invite her in, but he did give a sort of a nod to acknowledge what she had done for him that evening.

"If ya'll weren't of the vamp persuasion, I might consider thankin' you for what you've done."

Considering that he had been kidnapped and subjected to horrible things at the hands of Eric, Persephone didn't really blame him. But the little smile he had on suggested that he was just teasing.

"I guess I'll see you at the bar."

"Yeah. Well, I sure as fuck hope that's the only place I see ya'll from now on. It's gettin' a little old, you showin' up every time I get my ass handed to me."

* * *

><p>Back at Merlotte's, Persephone poked her head in for a moment to check that Felix was inside. He was, attempting to chat up the newest waitress. Jessica didn't look particularly interested, but Persephone was surprised to see that for once Felix was being genuine in his attempt. He was very charming when he wanted to be; it had been quite easy for him to lull young women to their dooms, even without glamouring them. But he looked like he was actually trying.<p>

Persephone waited another moment, witnessed Jessica walk away from Felix with a disgruntled expression, a look that may have been a little forced by its wearer, and then set off to locate Sam, who wasn't in his usual position manning the bar.

She walked into what appeared to be some kind of Mickens/Merlotte family discussion near the outer woods, besides the Mickens' parked van. All eyes flicked her way and regarded her cautiously, as though they had been discussing something private. Not too private, apparently, as Sam began speaking again. "I can't have ya'll living in my parking lot anymore. But I ain't gonna throw you out to the dogs, either."

A funny choice of expression, considering Tommy and Melinda's preferred animals for shifting.

Persephone crept forward and whispered something in Sam's ear. He looked at her with a mixture of surprise, thoughtfulness, and slight disagreement. He shook his head and she gave him a look that asked him to reconsider. Instead of waiting for him to make a decision, she jumped right on in.

"I've just acquired a new residence for myself, so I won't be needing the house I was staying in previously, though I do retain ownership over it. You're welcome to stay there for a while. It's likely I would have leased it out anyway."

Sam was annoyed that she hadn't waited for his opinion; it was his family, after all. None of her concern. He should have learnt by now that 'none of your concern' wasn't a phrase that Persephone held much faith in.

The Mickens' all looked slightly apprehensive about this offer, but Tommy and his mother, both supernatural themselves were less inclined to fear a vampire.

"You'll let us stay there? No charge?" Melinda asked cautiously. After the run-ins she had had with their previous landlords, she wasn't about to put herself in a position to be evicted at any moment.

"Well, Persy's house or not, I got two conditions," Sam said, stepping forward to take back control of the conversation. "One: no more stealing." He directed this comment at Tommy who, for once, traded his apathy for sheepishness.

"Two: no more drinkin'."

This comment was directed mostly at Joe-Lee, who was even holding a near-empty bottle of Jack Daniels.

"I think we can manage that," Melinda nodded, giving Joe-Lee a look so stern that he could only nod too.

"What about you, Tommy?" his father asked, "Think you can fly straight from now on?"

Tommy's gaze rose from his feet and fell upon Persephone for a moment. She tried to decipher his thoughts, but, like Sam, he was a little difficult to read. He glanced at his big brother, who raised his eyebrows expectantly.

"It was 'sposed to be a joke," Joe-Lee said, "'Fly straight'. Get it?"

Sam frowned, but redirected his attention as Tommy spoke up for the first time.

"Maybe I can," he agreed.

For the first time in his life, he was seeing a way out; a chance to get away from all the misery and poverty that he had endured for the past nineteen years. A new town, a new home, a new start. Maybe.

Since Persephone had to make a few arrangements to have her things moved from one house to the other that night, she spent the next few minutes on her phone. She had told the Mickens' that the house would be ready for them by mid-afternoon the following day, but unfortunately she couldn't be there to greet them.

Felix was leaning against the wall by the front entrance, smoking and waiting for his maker. She realized that she hadn't told him where their new house was yet.

"So, roomie, where to?" he asked.


	6. Chapter 6: Dumb

**Chapter 6:****Dumb**

I'm not like them  
>But I can pretend<br>The sun is gone,  
>But I have a light<br>The day is done,  
>I'm having fun<br>I think I'm dumb  
>Or maybe just happy.<br>(_**Nirvana**_)

The new manor was huge. Mainly in regards to the expanse of the land, but the house itself was probably a little more than two vampires needed; especially during the daytime.

Felix was ecstatic about getting his own room. Of course, he didn't mind sleeping beside his maker every night, but the cramped, stale hidey-hole was getting a little old. Persephone had gotten to work immediately, preparing the new house for its occupancy.

The previous owner of the house, who had died some 80 years ago, hadn't had any family to pass the property on to, so it had remained exactly the way he had left it after he had passed. The furniture, artwork and décor were that of the 1930s, and gave the house that touch of antiquity which Persephone loved so much. The only items she had brought over from the house by the bayou were the artifacts she had collected over the past few millennia.

The manor didn't have the best indoor plumbing, but aside from bathing, there wasn't much use a vampire would have for a working kitchen or bathroom. As luck would have it, the electrical wiring had been updated a few times since electricity had become common in households. Felix flicked on a few lights as they walked through the house and took in their new surroundings.

Glancing out the large, arch-shaped windows that looked onto the front yard, Persephone sighed. The company that usually provided vampire homes with light-proof shutters, (the aptly named 'Light Quellers'), had told her that they were booked up and couldn't make it down to the property for over a week. After failing to find a safe place to spend the day, and deciding that sleeping in the ground outside wasn't very appealing, Persephone decided that they would have to send one more night in the crawlspace under the other house. What the Mickens' didn't know wouldn't hurt them. Plus, the trapdoor was well-hidden, so there was no chance of them being discovered and exposed to the scorching sunlight.

"How far does this land extend out?" Felix asked as they stood out in the front yard once more. He was staring off into the dark woods that surrounded the property, almost dreamily.

"It's around a hundred acres, so quite a bit, I would imagine," she replied.

"Geez. When you buy, you really _buy_."

She smiled and stared down at the faint outline of what must have once been a grand driveway. It extended from the front gate all the way up to the front steps, moving around in a large circular shape before joining back up to the original path. The section of garden that sat in the center of the driveway, in front of the house, was overgrown with weeds, green grass and dead shrubs. Persephone stood for a moment, trying to imagine the best way to restore it to its former glory. Gravel was her best bet for the driveway; she hated the look of cement and cobblestone seemed so outdated and impractical. And once the circular garden had been cleared, some new flowers and a fountain would look perfect.

"Hey, Pers!" Felix called, "Do you smell something weird?"

For the first time in perhaps ever, Felix looked cautious. He was still staring off into the forest, but now he took a few steps back. Persephone lifted her nose to the air to see if she could pick up anything out of the ordinary. But whatever had been out in her woods was now gone.

* * *

><p>With a few hours before sunrise, Persephone set to work cleaning the house, managing to convince Felix to lend a helping hand. Now, housecleaning is a fast and easily done task for a vampire, but for two vampires it was a breeze. They had the entire place spotless within a couple of hours. Hands-on-hips, Persephone seemed a little disappointed by their swift work. It was one less thing she had to worry about, but at the same time it was one less thing she could spend time doing if she wanted something to occupy herself with. These days, though, there was plenty to do. At five a.m., they returned to the crawlspace to sleep in the dirt one last time.<p>

* * *

><p>Felix was still asleep when Persephone rose the following evening, which was probably a good thing; two vampires might have been a bit much for Tommy to handle seeing suddenly appear near the bottom of the staircase. He stood in the kitchen doorway, a carton of orange juice raised halfway to his mouth, his head tilted at an angle ready to drink.<p>

"Oh, uh…"

It wasn't often that Persephone had trouble finding words, but she hadn't anticipated running into any of the Mickens'. Tommy was supposed to be starting work at Merlotte's that day, and his parents had driven off somewhere together a few hours earlier (she'd heard the car leave the bumpy driveway). She had no idea why she hadn't sensed Tommy returning home, and then, realizing that he was wearing only a pair of jeans, no shirt or shoes, she knew why; he'd made his way home via animal form. She hadn't been listening out for an animal. There was so much wildlife in the area that it seemed pointless to keep track of any of it.

"What are you doin'?"  
>He lowered the carton and stared at her suspiciously.<p>

"I wasn't expecting anyone to be home."

"Not a good way to start an excuse, but I hope you got more of an answer than that."

"My new house isn't finished yet. I thought it would be harmless to spend an extra night here."

Tommy raised an eyebrow and gave a sort of half-shrug as though to say 'no harm done', but he still seemed put off. She realized he was a little nervous about being alone in a house with a vampire. Make that two. Felix emerged from the secret door that led to the trapdoor in the floor, pretending to rub his eyes like a child that had been woken in the middle of the night.

"What's happening, ma?" he asked.

If Tommy had been put off before, he was definitely weirded out now. Felix stalked off towards the kitchen to see if there was any Tru Blood left in the fridge (which he new perfectly well there wasn't), passing Tommy closer then was necessary with a psychotic grin. Persephone closed her eyes and sighed. When she opened them again, she found Tommy gazing at her curiously.

"How was your first day at Merlotte's?" she asked conversationally.

"Borin' as shit. I was taking orders from Sam all day."

"He's your boss."

"He's my brother."

Persephone didn't really know where to go with that, so she changed the person of interest to someone less trying.  
>"Did you meet Lafayette?"<p>

"Yep."

If he was trying to keep the conversation to a minimum, he was succeeding. But there was no way Persephone was going to let him get away with it; after all, difficult juveniles were her specialty.

"And?"

"What? He's alright, I guess."

Felix sauntered back out from the kitchen the same way he had gone in, passing by Tommy and stopping beside Persephone.

"I guess ya'll be goin' now?" Tommy asked, "I know this used to be your place and all, but it's got our stuff in it and I don't think my ma would much like you being here alone."

"Yeah, 'cause I need some more stained wife-beater shirts to add to my wardrobe," Felix muttered, smirking to himself. Persephone gave him a piercing look and glanced back at Tommy with a softer expression.

"You're not staying?" she asked.

"Ain't enough people to cover the shifts at Merlotte's, so I got to go back and work double. Nice of Sam to call to tell me when I'd already left."

"I'm kind of thirsty," Felix interrupted, which seemed a little rude and selfish, but it was serious for a vampire so young. Persephone looked back at him and nodded.

"I might see you later," she said, and then she and Felix disappeared through the front door.

Tommy walked over to it and stared out into the empty yard. The flowers were all beginning to close for the winter, but their sweet scent still hung in the air. He breathed it in, picking up more than the scent of the garden, then turned around and went to find his discarded shirt and shoes.

* * *

><p>"Sam's family is straaange," Felix said as he and Persephone walked up through the front gates of the manor.<p>

"Hm, let's see: them poor, you serial killer?"

Felix chuckled and spirited up to the top of the stairs near the front door. "Dibs on the bedroom on the second floor. The one with that huge four-poster bed."

Persephone cocked an eyebrow at him and grinned mischievously. "Only if you get there before me."

She took off before he even knew what she meant. It was an unfair race, seeing as she had a good few thousand years on him, but it was all out of fun. She collapsed on the bed he had so fondly described, and relaxed into the soft duvet.

Felix smiled, before dropping down next to her. They stared up at the velvet canopy that draped down over the side of the bed frame.

"What's up, Persy?," he asked after a few minutes. Because of their blood bond, their emotions were almost transparent to one another, especially when they were so physically close. He was picking up some very strange emotions, things which she was usually very good at hiding. He frowned and turned his head to face her. She was deep in thought, her face completely still.

"You thinking about Godric?"

"In a way," she sighed.

She got up and walked towards the bedroom door.

"A crate of blood was delivered today. It'll be in the fridge. I made sure they unpacked it. I'm going down to the bar."

She left the room and Felix pursed his lips. Something was definitely up; she hadn't added her usual 'Don't leave the house, please'.

* * *

><p>It was a relatively quiet night at Merlotte's that night. Jessica, who was working as the hostess, stood with her back to the front door, leaning back against the wooden side of one of the booths. When Persephone walked in, Jessica sighed and picked up a menu, failing to notice who the new customer was.<p>

"Welcome to Merlotte's" – she passed her the menu- "If you'll just follow me, I'll- Oh, hi Persy. If you're looking for Sam, I think he's out the back. He's been a grumpy ass all night."

Persephone smiled, but shook her head.  
>"I think I might take one of the booths tonight, if there are any free."<p>

The last part had been a sort of a joke, since there were hardly any customers in sight. She headed for a booth towards the back, taking a seat and flicking through the menu just out of curiosity.

She was soon approached by Tommy, who seemed a little confused about her playing customer rather than being off with Sam.

"Did you want to order anything?" he asked.

He looked tired, his slumped shoulders and the light circles under his eyes confirming this. Either he hadn't gotten much sleep, or being on his feet all day for a double shift wasn't agreeing with him.

"Uh, yes. I'll have the burger with the lot, a side of fries and a diet coke, please," she ordered, watching him take all this down on his writing pad.

He turned to deliver the order to the kitchen, before realizing that the order had been a joke. Turning back with a questioning look, he caught her smiling.

"True Blood. A-negative," she told him. He nodded and continued to stare as though trying to work something out about her.

"That's not very nice," he said, trying not to grin, "First you break into my house, then you play jokes on me when I'm runnin' on like three hours sleep. What's next? You gonna fuck my brother?"

To his surprise she actually laughed at that one. He went and got her drink, returning a short time later to deliver it.

"What are you doing later tonight?" he asked her casually.

"Besides marauding for flesh and devouring children?" she joked. She had chosen the wrong moment, as Arlene walked passed carrying an empty tray. She stopped dead, horrified, and then turned tail and fled to Sam's office.

"Sam, I need the rest of the night off!" they heard her call out to him, "I got my kids to think about!"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So now I'm up-to-date with my editing and I've successfully moved all the chapters from Quizilla! The only problem is you'll now have to wait a little longer for new chapters, since I'll have to start them from scratch. I think I need to go back and re-watch season 3 just to refresh my memory, and then find that outline I had for the story... **

**A big thanks to everyone who has read and reviewed so far – I look forward hearing from more of you!**


	7. Watch This Space!

Hey guys :)

Good news! I'll be continuing this story in the coming weeks. I'm going over my old notes, procrastinating by making a playlist dedicated to each part of the story (so far there are 4 parts to the story I have planned, including the three parts already posted). I will continue where I left off in part three 'My Beloved Monster' and keep going from there.

No guarantees on deadlines for this, but will definitely have something new posted in the next fortnight.

Thanks to those following the story, those who reviewed it, and those who favorited it. I appreciate your patience over the past few years. Hopefully the wait will have been worth it!

xoxo


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